Positive: A Memoir

We all have experiences and things about us that we might wish we could change, but the truth is that we can’t change ourselves. We can only to learn to accept those experiences and truths and use them to create a better world- because, in truth, the problems that we see as instrumental to our downfalls in life are actually the things that empower us and reveal the reasons why we mean something to the world.

Paige Rawl realized this while she stared at herself in the mirror, just having taken too many sleeping pills and listening to too many voices telling her that she wasn’t enough. Her story of living with an HIV positive identity, and overcoming the hate and prejudice of living truthfully, captivated me from the first page.

We all have different stories, different backgrounds, different dreams. But, as Rawl points out- “what if our differences could be the thing that bring us together?” Hers is a story of hope, and of unconditional love. She learns the hard lesson of forgiveness, of how to forgive and love those who hate you- even when it’s the hardest thing to do.